Korean Lab Worker Forced to Donate Her Own Egg

[SVT Cobra]

Text

U.S. Scientist Quits Stem-Cell Alliance
By a WALL STREET JOURNAL Staff Reporter
November 12, 2005; Page A5A

A prominent U.S. scientist is withdrawing from an international collaboration to create human embryonic stem cells.

Gerald Schatten, a cell biologist at the University of Pittsburgh, said he was severing all collaborations with the laboratory of Dr. Woo Suk Hwang of Seoul University.

Dr. Hwang, a veterinarian, has drawn international applause for leading the first effort to clone human embryos and extract their stem cells. Last month, he announced the formation of the World Stem Cell Foundation, an international alliance aimed at spreading that technology.

Dr. Schatten, who was to have led the organization's board of directors, says he is now severing collaboration with Dr. Hwang, due to questions over the source of human eggs used in a 2004 cloning project, and errors in a 2005 paper coauthored by the scientists.

A 2004 news report in the journal Nature said at least one female laboratory worker had provided eggs for the project, an allegation that Dr. Hwang has denied on several occasions. Under U.S. rules, collecting eggs from women working on a cloning project would be considered unethical. In the original paper, published by the journal Science last year, the scientists said the eggs all came from anonymous donors.

that's some crazy stuff there...anyone else hear more about this?

 

[SSP]

Where does it say she was forced?

 

[ThisIsMatt]

Where did it say she was forced?

 

[Babbles]

Forced or not, I could see why it would be considered unethical.

 

[Shlong]

The force is weak with this one, no forced.

 

[bmacd]

who said it was forced?

-=bmacd=-

 

[DanTMWTMP]

i'm still all for this research. no forcing either. just a lot of speculation it seems?

seems like they're just piling up excuses or something...

 

[0roo0roo]

poor delicate flower. women must be protected as they cannot protect themselves.

 

[KingofCamelot]

Bah, false advertising.

 

[uhohs]

koreans are always hardcore

 

[sniperruff]

it's possible that she wanted to do it on her own to receive favorable treatments in the lab. academic lab jobs are tough, even in the US.

however, seeing that nobody can prove that she's forced, this is just plain slander against stem cell research.

 

[Babbles]

I do not see that as simple slander, the guy that is calling out the Korean lab seems to be the primary US research scientist involved with that project - he is not just some Joe Blow that is protesting the research. As such he seems to be totally "for" stem cell research and I doubt this is done to "slander against stem cell research."

Again it does seem unethical. For starters there seems to be a major conflict of interest at stake, and secondarily the article mentioned that originally the eggs were anonymous donations and now that does not appear to be correct. To falsify something like that can indeed call into question the integrity of the rest of the research.

I work as an analytical chemist for a research organization, and if we were to falsify where our reagents, standards, and media came from, then all of the work would essentially be considered null and void, not to mention the legal implications.

 

[Imported]

Don't see how it was forced.. also don't see how its unethical unless I'm missing something huge?